IDLES
Among an impossible-to-ignore flurry of bands currently coming out of Bristol, Idles stand alone.
Creeping into life somewhere around three years ago, from their first live performance Idles possessed more than that vaguest of attributes: potential.
At no point have the band seemed like kids finding their feet. Idles appeared as a fully formed group of men, a little rough around the edges perhaps, but entirely accomplished, and with the music to back up the self-belief. Kindly donating a drummer to the illustrious CSS – gaining the vital and exact power of Jon Beavis in return – they arrived at their current line-up; guitarists Mark Bowen and Andy S, bassist Dev, fronted by Joe Talbot. Having released a series of tunes (done a disservice in being referred to as ‘demos’) they recently released their debut EP, Welcome. Joe tells us it’s been a long wait.
“We recorded a demo just over a year ago but we could only afford 100 copies so they went out pretty quickly,” he says. “Considering that’s the only thing we’ve released in the three years we’ve been together, I think I speak for everyone when I say – shit yes, the EP’s been a long time coming. But we wouldn’t have done it any sooner, even if we could, as we wanted to feel 100 percent confident in our sound and also our live show. It’s no good having a great recording if you can’t back it up with a mad wicked live show.”
It’s an admirable trait, the awareness and confidence to wait until the time is right, to resist forcing the issue. Even for a four track EP, Idles insisted on formulating a certain sonic diversity whilst maintaining the balanced sense of a single piece. “We had two songs we were proud of and we’d saved up enough money to record a four-track EP, so we decided to make it a concise exercise in conveying our sound and who we are. Two Tone was a song we’d been playing live for a short while and loved. We thought it was a perfect contrast to the other songs, giving the audience our spectrum. The EP is an entity that works as a billboard for our sound and introduces us; hence the title, Welcome.”
And it certainly appears to have worked. Opener 26/27 is a brooding, atmospheric builder, where glittery guitars hark at Les Savy Fav’s more measured moments, while the grandiose gloom and dark energy of Interpol permeates its entire body. Germany is a sparser affair, a distant hum of interweaving lines and desperate cries. The likes of Meydei and Two Tone, meanwhile, feature a jagged, terse urgency, undertones of repressed violence darting through in downstroked guitars and snarling, clenched delivery. On the former, a release of sorts bubbles through a swinging drum break at the song’s heart; yet all the while that tautness of rhythm remains, gripping and dynamic. It makes for captivating listening.
Talbot’s vocal delivery and thematic focus is symptomatic of a band who know and have proved they can smash people to pieces, yet are seeking to permeate the listener through more substantial means. On Meydei, as he seethes “bleeding on the bathroom floor/laying on the bathroom”, the tightly-wound, inward-facing frustration is genuinely potent. “The lyrical focus of Welcome is self-doubt and fear”, Joe reveals. “I want to be as honest a writer as possible. I don’t want to be indulgent, but I feel that everyone can relate to those themes. A lot of my fears come out in anger, I feel that the writing process should be cathartic in some way, and attacking my fears helps.”
This heartfelt intensity spews forth as a key component of the band’s live existence. An unpredictable, thrilling and almost intimidating maelstrom of beards and spit and glazed, livid eyes, there’s no doubt that Idles mean it. Joe is quick to point out that in live and recorded personas, Idles operate on almost entirely separate planes. “Fuck no, do we function the same in the studio as we do live”, he exclaims. “We go bat-shit mental live. Less so these days, as I think we were masking our inadequacies before, but now we’re tight and confident enough in our musicianship to be slightly more refined in our bat-shitness. In the studio we want to be able to offer a depth in sound our piss poor equipment can’t offer live. We want our live shows to be shows. Idles are in effect two bands, the ethic is the same but the experiences are different, but hopefully both exciting.”
There’s a tightness about Idles on and off stage that comes unmistakably from being genuinely close friends. While it gives them that vital collective energy which is impossible to fake, it also poses a potential duality in their relationship as bandmates and friends. “They are my best mates, and were so before the band,” Joe considers. “But we have to put our friendship on hold, in a way, because whenever we’re together it’s for the band. This isn’t a problem because we all love music, and at the moment we need to put other things behind us to try and turn this into a career. Not hanging out together and getting pissed is no sacrifice for writing and performing together, it’s the best thing I’ve ever done and what better than to do it with your best mates? I love them all like brothers and that won’t change.”
Such legitimate desire can so often be the difference between a great band and a world of what ifs. But now, with a swelling national reputation and support growing ever more voluminous and vocal, this appears to be a group of gentlemen with a strong sense of momentum. As Talbot puts it, “we’re humbled at where we are now, but we’re ready for so much more.”
Welcome to Idles.
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Welcome is available now on Fear of Fiction
Dates:
Fear of Fiction Festival, Bristol | November 10th
Lock Tavern, Camden | January 27th
Words: Geraint Davies
Photo: Theo Cottle
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